They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.”

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.” “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked. They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.” “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?” “We can,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.” When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

–Mark 10.32-45 (NIV)

I am indebted to Bishop N.T. Wright, former bishop of Durham, for the controlling idea that follows in today’s reflection. He asked this wonderfully thought-provoking question in a recent lecture at Duke University. “What would it look like if God were running the show [here on earth]?” I will attempt to put some details to +Wright’s controlling idea in this and future reflections. So if you don’t like the supporting details, then blame me for screwing up a good idea, not Bishop Wright. 🙂

Two things jump out at us immediately in today’s passage that provide answers to the above question. In the first part of the passage, we see that God’s rescue plan for us involves his own suffering and death in Jesus and this causes us both to be astonished and afraid. In the context of today’s passage, Jesus’ disciples are astonished because they probably cannot believe he is going to put himself in mortal danger by going to Jerusalem. For those who loved Jesus, this would also have undoubtedly made them afraid, both for him and for their own future as well as their hopes and dreams.

Likewise with us. We are astonished at the nature of God’s rescue plan for us to end our alienation and exile from him, which without a rescue plan can only lead to our death. If God is omnipotent, why can’t he just forgive us and be done with it? Why all the mess of the cross and its accompanying ghastly torture? But to think thusly ignores the need for God to be true to himself. In other words, it ignores the need for God to satisfy his holy justice. I do not have the time or space here to explicate this fully. Suffice it to say that the way God rescues us from our alienation from him initially surprises and troubles us deeply. We don’t expect a King to hang on a cross, let alone the King of the universe.

The second thing that jumps out at us is what our relationships will look like when we see God running the show here on earth. We see this clearly illustrated in the second scenario in today’s passage. Good old James and John brashly demonstrate that they don’t get how things will work in God’s Kingdom, despite Jesus’ steadfast effort to teach them. They ask him for the privilege of being the top dogs with him in his new Kingdom, his right hand men so to speak, and are told in no uncertain terms that the traditional notions of power and prestige will have no place in God’s Kingdom. Instead, the great ones will be called servants. The great ones will not be getting served by the worker bees, but rather will be doing the serving! Moreover, Jesus tells us that if we need an example to follow, he will provide it himself by giving his life to ransom us from the terrible cost of our sin.

Uh oh. Sounds like he expects us to imitate him in that “taking up your cross everyday” thingy. I mean, really, Jesus.

This too is completely unexpected and causes us to be both astonished and afraid because we don’t want to give up our self-perceived place as king or queen of the universe. Let’s face it. We would rather be served than to serve! We would rather be Emperor of the World (or at least king of the hill) rather than some lowly, ignored, and unappreciated, no-account servant.

But no. What we see being required of us when God establishes himself as King here on earth will be a life of sacrifice and servanthood. We are to aspire to be the least rather than the greatest. Are you living such a life? Does that even sound like a life you would want to live?

When we look at the Kingdom of God being established here on earth we are both astonished and afraid because we don’t see a kingdom the way the world sees and defines it. Instead of being the center of things and enjoying both power and status, if we want to be part of God’s Kingdom here on earth we are to take up our cross every day, deny our selves (not to be confused with abandoning our core personality), and follow Jesus in serving others. It’s counter-intuitive and that makes us afraid. But if by the help of the Holy Spirit we are able to take the plunge, we can be confident that our lives will suddenly take on new and fresh meaning and purpose. We will also be able to live with the assurance that our future is secure so that we can look forward to life in ways that will only astonish us.

Catch a glimpse of the Kingdom and then ask Jesus to help you take the plunge in following him if you have not done so already. You will find that as you do, your astonishment will increase but your fear will be obliterated because you will come to know the One who loves you and gave himself for you so that you can enjoy life here on this earth and forever. It won’t necessarily be the kind of enjoyment that money or power or prestige can bring. It will be the kind of enjoyment that results when we know we are living faithful and obedient lives that are pleasing in the eyes of the King whom we love and serve.